The foreign ministers of South Korea, China and Japan on Friday discussed ways to jointly tackle the COVID-19 outbreak via video conference. 

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegi that the outbreak is a matter directly related to the lives of the three countries’ people, which she cited as the key area for three-way cooperation.  

Kang said other than mulling over ways to contain the spread of the virus, the three countries must share views on how to minimize contractions in personnel exchanges and cooperation, as well as economic and social shocks.  

Kang stressed that the World Health Organization(WHO) underlined the need for all countries to strike a fine balance between protecting health, minimizing economic and social disruption, and respecting human rights. 

Friday’s meeting came after director-level officials from the three countries’ foreign ministries held a similar meeting earlier on Tuesday.